Kishikaisei 23564::Volume 1:Yakusoku
by xxxKei
Summary: A promise brought them together. Fate will cause them to fight, but as the dawn on a new millennium approaches, everyone will have to pick sides, but betrayal, friendship, sacrifice, and darkness lurking within will make them question everything they thought they knew. The Kamikaze is about to blow and change the face of the Earth, forever. AU/OOC.
1. Prologue

(I)

Prologue

_Fate binds two hearts like string_

_which leads them through the path of death,_

_to fight against the cruel King,_

_until the gods take their last breath._

_._

_I pray farewell dear life._

_Your splendor fills my heart with peace,_

_but for now I have to leave you..._

_Death awaits at the gate of Hell._

_._

_._

_._

Ichigo painfully raised his head, cracking his eye open from the dried blood, looking beyond the line of men at the setting sun. The gleaming orb slowly disappearead in the horizon, marking the mere moments of life left to him, orange and crimson rays reflected on the blade of the Kwan Dao that was soon to slice his neck. It was a moment of reverence for him. He'd heard that on the brink of death, you see your life flashing before your eyes. It may have seemed totally insane to anyone else, but a part of him had... hoped that the fate bestowed upon him would trigger the memories which had deprived him of half his life. And yet, as if in an outworldly state of mind, his lids lowered in peace and acceptance. If he said there was anything in the life he had gracelessly lead worth living for, he would have lied. He glaced at the man kneeling and bound next to him, awaiting to share his fate. Even for the pallor and the various injuries that adorned his face, his jaw was set firmly and his chin was up; facing his executors with spite for their deeds, but also pride at how he had ended up in that position. In the very depths of his dark eyes, there was the ever-existent fear of death, the constant will to hold on to life. How admirable must it be to love something so dearly, but decide to let it go for the sake of righteousness! Ichigo chuckled as he turned to face his shadow. He was not a hero, even if many had graced him with that title before. A true hero must first hold their life precious, to really make a sacrifice for someone else's. In a way, he was selfish. If he lived, he could have helped more people along the way... even that girl. But he surrendered to his punishment, without worries or regrets. If he said he was not envious of the man next to him, he would be lying. And so being the situation, he calmly addressed the official before him.

"I want to die first."

The man laughed throatily and raised the menacing blade in the air, as the last traces of sunlight died away, replaced by freshly lit torches.

"Warrior, prepare to die!"

The Kwan Dao was raised high and Ichigo closed his eyes serenely, listening to the air whip as the blade came down to decapitate him. And a milisecond before that could happen, they heard it.

"YOU FORGOT THIS!"

Amber eyes snapped open to find a katana flying in the air above him.

~\/~

**~Kishikaisei 23564~**

**~Volume 1: Yakusoku~**

**~Chapter 1: Hajime~**


	2. The Girl Called Rukia Pt 1

(II)

約The girl called Rukia束

"Long ago, when the gods still roamed the skies in their true form, the human race was a scarce one, living in hiding and bowing down to the wishes of the gods. Until one day, one human stood up for them all; a warrior, a true fighter to defend the humans who suffered under the divine wrath. Thousands of myths revolve around him. Some say that he fed off the blood of the great god of war Hachiman, when he was stabbed on the eye by the god of thunder Raijin. They called him, Okami-sen. Hair blacker than the pits of hell where demons reside. Eyes crimson like the blood that stained his blade. His sole comrade a sword that is said to have been hammered by the god of fire Kagutsuchi in the burning gut of mount Haku, after he spit his bile on obsidian. Its name was Shinoryoken, the Hound of Death.

Okami-sen became the very first Shinigami, and upon their rise, the war between gods and humans began. With the birth of the first half-human half-god child by the supreme sun goddess Amaterasu, the war ended. When Shinoryoken was not needed any more, Okami-sen was said to have retrieved to the mountains away from Lord Death and died there, causing his spirit to never pass to Yomi, the underworld, but keep roaming the Earth for eternity!"

Rukia's eyes were wide and she clasped the bed sheet under her chin like a cloak as she finished her story. There was only moonlight providing luminosity to the plain six-bed dorm, whose age was far from that of its occupants.

"Kyuuuuuuuu!" The three toddlers gasped and fell back on the mattress, throwing their plump arms up in awe.

"Nani!" The scrawny old woman with round glasses and her ever faded apron appeared at the door of the dorm room angrily, brown hair dishevelled from the day's chores. She looked at Rukia accusingly and the little girl offered her an indignant pout. "Omae! Shame on you, keeping the children up all night with those stories of yours!"

Rukia huffed, which only served to aggravate the woman even more as the toddlers scattered under their covers. The old lady released a plain fan from the waistband of her apron and landed a smack on the back of the child's head.

"Hey!" Rukia rubbed the back of her head grudgingly and glared at the woman.

"Do you know what day is tomorrow, Ru-ki-a?" The woman scoffed and took hold of the girl's ear threateningly.

Rukia nodded. "Sakuranbo pie day."

She squealed when the open fan clashed with her head again, followed by a stern pull on her ear. "Kozo! If only you didn't spend so much time with those legend books, maybe you'd have a better sense of reality!"

"Che, everything's so boring on here!" She frowned, earning herself another smack.

"Listen to me kozo! Tomorrow, the excavations on the Shinto Temple are going to begin! You know what that means?" The woman tagged on the little girl's ear.

"Mrs. Araharu will force us into child labor?"

The woman became red and repeatedly smacked Rukia's head, causing the girl to curl into a ball.

"Afoo! I cannot stand you, I just can't! Tomorrow the excavation team will come to the village, along with a Daimyo AND his Shogun! A Shogun! Here in Kumomura! I want every one of my children to rest and behave from now on! And you are all going to scrub yourselves clean tomorrow morning! No skipping school and no running around, Rukia! The council knows of your little escapades and they sternly warned me to not let any of my children run around town! The officials should not be disturbed for any reason, you hear me? And who knows, if you are good kids, maybe some of you will get adopted!"

Rukia looked at her blankly. "Che, you always said no one would ever adopt someone like me!"

Mrs. Araharu sighed and pinched Rukia's cheek harshly. "That still doesn't mean that you can keep misbehaving like you used to! These people could bring wealth and money to the village, you get that? Heck, maybe we'll be able to get you guys new shoes soon!"

The girl pursed her lips. "But I don't like to wear shoes."

_SMACK._ "You can't run around like a bare-footed monkey!"

* * *

"Put me down now! That's child abuse I say!" squirmed and yelled Rukia, as she was being carried by two women towards the girls' bath house. She had tried to jump off the dorm window that morning, but they had caught her.

"Oi, kozo! Be compliant for once and we can get this over with!" whined Mrs. Araharu. Once in the bath house, they set Rukia down and she made to remove her plain nightdress, but the little girl became red and held on to the fabric violently. "Take it off, Rukia!"

"No! You are a pervert!" The girl pointed at the caretaker accusingly and the woman's eye twitched.

"Ru... ki... a... TAKE OFF THE DAMN DRESS SO I CAN WASH YOU!"

The girl crossed her arms and scoffed, holding her chin up. "You said that a lady never undresses in front of others."

Uncontrollable perspiration gathered on the woman's brow in a final attempt not to snap at the stubborn child. With the help of the other lady, they managed to pull a kicking and screaming Rukia out of her dress and the older woman stood before a blushing naked child with her hands crossed triumphantly. "Aha! Now, kozo, in the tub!"

"Pervert! Child molester!" yelled the girl, trying to annoy the hell out of the woman as she tried to cover herself. And it worked.

Mrs. Araharu rolled up her sleeves and grabbed a towel, which she used to smack Rukia's buttocks.

"Aouch! My toosie!" Rukia cried and jumped backwards, towards the tub.

The woman's eye glimmered and she smacked her again, causing Rukia to jump back repeatedly.

"That is child abuse!" whined Rukia as she jumped away from the assaulting towel, until she tripped and fell in the tub. "Aaaaaa!" She desperately slapped her arms and legs in an attempt to keep herself afloat, yelling and screaming because she didn't know how to swim.

Mrs. Araharu rolled up her dress and plunged her legs into the tub, reaching in and grabbing Rukia by the underarms, lifting her over the surface. The girl panted and looked at the woman with wide eyes.

"I almost died in there! You could have killed me! I could have drowned! I swear I saw the light at the end of the tunnel! Oi oi oi!" The girl waved her arms horrified, but the woman wasn't convinced.

"Yamete! Yamete!" _Gloop_. Rukia desperately held her breath as her body was forced underwater. Her eyes bulged when air escaped her nostrils in big bubbles and her cheeks puffed in a last attempt to hold herself from drowning. The hands pushing her shoulders down violently pulled her up, causing her to cough and gasp for precious oxygen.

"Kozo!" Mrs. Araharu had her bare feet in the water in which she repeatedly sank Rukia, sweat breaking on her temple as she strived to clean the child. "All this time... running away! Who knows since when you've been unwashed! Kami! Look at the dirt in your hair!" The woman rubbed the top of her dark head with a thick brush that they used on the carpeting, creating a filthy foam on top of the raven mob.

Rukia whimpered, cried and released an occasional yell at the brush that stung her skin and at the thick spilling foam that prickled her eyes. Why would she want to bathe if baths were like that?

The little girl blinked at her reflection in the mirror. She was wearing a crisp clean white yukata, red geta, and her hair looked silky and shiny as it flowed against her round face. Which looked incredibly pale compared to her usual dark with dirt skin. She turned around with pursed lips, looking at the three women. Mrs. Araharu was panting from her inhumane efforts, fanning herself desperately. One of the helpers was glaring at Rukia as the other patched up her hand. Yup, she was the one holding Rukia's head in place as the three women attempted to comb through her hair, all the while cringing at the girl's yells. It wasn't Rukia's fault she accidentally bit down on her hand a little too hard. She gave the poor victim a toothy grin and puffed up her cheeks, looking at the ceiling and rocking innocently.

* * *

"Stop fidgeting!" hissed Mrs. Araharu as she squeezed Rukia's hand hard enough to stop the blood flow. Rukia suppressed a squeal and puffed her cheeks annoyed, knowing that any sound to elicit from her would cause the council to once again turn unanimously and glare at her. The caretaker patted her forehead with a handkerchief, digging her nails into Rukia's palm. The girl knew she was afraid she would embarrass her, and seeing the old woman rush to dress up in her especially reserved yellow lace dress and powder her face a hundred times, Rukia decided to pity the woman and at least for now try to act nice. She would run away later and got get her cherry pie as a reward to herself.

She knew she could do nothing to occupy herself now; the caretaker was making sure she wouldn't move an inch, the council was on their toes for any disruption, and the whole village was blocking every possible escape as they had all gathered before the gates of Kumomura, expecting the excavation team and those high and mighty officials. Rukia didn't understand what the fuss was all about. The guys were going to dig away down the shallow canyon nearby. She had a shovel once. No one waited around for her with gifts and trumpets when she decided to go digging. She looked to her right, where Renji stood like a soldier. All the orphanage kids were wearing the same apparel.

She produced a tiny whistle, which made the red head momentarily glance nervously from the corner of his eye, then set his gaze ahead sternly. She pouted. She knew he was ignoring her in fear of her getting him into trouble again. For some reason, Renji was really excited about those people visiting the village. She decided to entertain herself with catching the gossip that the villagers seemed to be caught into; who was wearing what, whose daughter they wanted to fix up with, who was up to make money, what they heard about the newcomers...

The sounds of the horns echoed around the slopes of the mountain, and sounds of exclamation produced from the crowd as they craned to see who was coming. Rukia of course, being shorter than her eight years of age allowed, could see nothing but the elegant kimono of the council. She could hear marching. Claps, cheers and happy remarks. When Mrs. Araharu let go of her hand to clap along, Rukia fell on her knees and crawled between the villagers' legs to see what it was all about. She saw dozens of identical working boots pass, along with the wheels of carriages full of equipment. She looked up to see six well-built men in black kimono carrying a very elegant litter, adorned with beautifully crafted red drapes with golden embroidery and an emblem-like pattern on the front, completely hindering any glimpse of the occupants. Rukia resisted the urge to whistle at the fine art piece. She had never seen anything prettier in her life. She squeaked when the council walked forth and the elder spoke towards the retinue.

"Welcome to the humble village of Kumomura, Shogun." He bowed. "It is our honour to accept your visit and we shall see that your stay offers everything that we can provide. The entire village is willing to offer every assistance possible to your work here on the Shinto Temple."

A man in a blue kimono walked forth to greet them and raised his palm. "Kuchiki Shogun will not stay long; but your hospitality shall be rewarded. He will see that the works on the excavation will progress without hindrance and he asks the villagers not to disturb their every day lives because of his presence. He wishes to spend his stay here in peace and quiet and let the workers proceed according to instructions."

The elder nodded and bowed again. "Arigatou for your kindness and generosity, Shogun. May the gods bless your work and light your way." Then he turned to the crowd and raised his hands. "You are all free to return to your daily activities." He momentarily glanced at Rukia warningly. "And make sure that the Shogun is not disturbed in any way, but utterly respected."

Rukia suppressed a squeak when she felt a bony hand pull at her ankle and saw a stern Mrs. Araharu pull her to her feet. "Children, we are going back to school now," announced the woman, trying to sound confident and holding Rukia as if she would turn to air any minute.

The caretaker contemplated tying the girl down to her seat when the children were seated in their places upon their return to the orphanage's school. Rukia of course was made to sit in the very front, to maximum proximity to the teacher, a role which Mrs. Araharu also took up.

Rukia's stomach made gurgly sounds from hunger; the time spent on chasing after her, forcing her to wash and trying to untangle her hair, meant she had no time to even smell breakfast. Cherry pies were all that was occupying her mind as the other kids animatedly asked questions about the newcomers.

"Ah, Araharu-sama? Do you think that the Shogun or the Daimyo will adopt any of us?"

Rukia winced at the curt question, turning towards the source of the sugar coated voice. Beka Kireru. She called her Baka Kireru. She was the most stuck-up, self-absorbed person she knew. And also Rukia's stark opposite, with perfect blonde curls, icy blue eyes, she was like a doll, adored by everyone in the village and complimented by even more. Rukia snorted, earning a death glare from the other girl.

"You are just jealous, because a Shogun would never adopt you! I bet they took hours to clean you up!" bit the blonde, looking down on her.

"Che, like I care. I don't want to be adopted anyway!" She crossed her arms behind her head and leaned back casually. "Why have people watching over me all day long when I can get outa here whenever I like?" chuckled Rukia, waving her hand dismissively.

"Aye, silence! Now, we have a lesson to do! Open your textbooks!" called the teacher, trying to break up the rising argument.

"Like anyone would want to adopt you..." murmured Beka, which very well reached Rukia's ears.

"Aye! And why would anyone want to adopt you and your fake personality?" yelled Rukia, springing to her feet.

The blonde followed suit. "I'm not the one running around in the mud like a monkey and stealing food! I'm civilized!"

"Yamete!" The teacher banged her fist on the desk angrily, but to no avail.

"Baka! You are just walking around like a dolly and want to be adored!" Rukia pushed the tip of her nose up, mockingly.

"At least somebody likes me! You don't have any friends! Even Renji ignored you today! No body in the village likes you! And Araharu-sama—"

"BEKA STOP!"

"—said you are always making her life difficult!"

Indigo eyes hid under dark bangs and tiny pale fists clenched before Rukia ran out of the classroom as fast as her small legs could take her, the teacher's yells fading into the distance.

* * *

The little girl scowled as she walked on the sides of walls, keeping herself in the shadows as she crossed the village. The streets were too busy today. Carriages darted here and there, the smell of baking bread was much heavier than usual, women jumped around like hens in the dresses they usually reserved for special occasions. Everybody was so busy and excited, they hardly noticed the gloom faced tiny girl as she made her way down the street. She didn't know why Beka's words were bothering her, but she dismissed it and made her way towards her favorite tea house, to treat herself to her usual; the cherry pie she would swipe from the window sill when the owner wasn't looking. Some people would call that stealing. She viewed it as getting her payment for being stuck in her boring village and being served a poor porridge on most days, used as a form of punishment for her; and the baker was fat enough and she knew he knew she stole from him. Once he put salt instead of sugar in the pie he left on the sill, in hopes that the appalling food would make her stop. Rukia was smarter than that; she waited in the corner for the owner to spread the real pies to cool down and exchanged hers for a good one. The owner quit in the end and let her have her share. It was a silent deal.

The little girl puffed up her cheeks boringly and strutted down the dirt road like a penguin, looking at the flower wreaths being hung over the rooftops and the old ladies moping their door steps frantically. Why would anyone go through so much trouble? Her wide eyes fell on the tea house, whose door was preoccupied by a swarm of people, predominantly women, looking inside and squirming, holding fresh baked goods eagerly.

"I heard the Shogun is married, though!"

"Oh no, he lost his wife! He sure needs a new one!"

"I heard he prefers lemon pie!"

"The Daimyo is single, too!"

"I heard the Shogun is the most handsome man in the shogunate!"

She raised a small eyebrow as she approached, but ignored them and stretched on her tip toes, her hands curling over the wooden bench to reach for her delicious treat. She moved her hand right. Then left, palming the flat surface, her small tongue sticking out from the effort. She pouted and slowly popped her head over the window sill, to see a perfectly empty surface. She frowned. Everybody was baking like crazy today and now the old man baked nothing?

"Oi! Rojin!" she yelled, practically hanging off the window as she tried to lift herself higher to look into the kitchen. "Rojin!"

"Damare!" roared the baker as he emerged from the kitchen and smacked Rukia's head with a wooden spoon angrily.

"Rojin! Stop hitting me! I came for my sakuranbo pie!"

"Not today, kozo! We are closed for the village!" barked the fat man , lighting his pipe.

"Doushite? You can't convince me you didn't bake today!"

"Ano, do you have any idea what's going on, kozo?" asked the man, raising a thick eyebrow and scowling.

Rukia looked at the man blankly. The owner sighed as he twisted his pipe on his lips.

"Listen, kiddo. The shop is accommodating the Shogun and his retinue today! They've brought their norimono in the back of the shop and we are only catering to them." The obese man leaned out of the window and glared at the mob of people trying to get in the shop. "And the Shogun doesn't want to be disturbed by anyone! We have enough food to feed an army in here, so scatter!" he yelled, earning death glares from the women who so eagerly had baked their goods.

Some of them decided to adopt a more courting approach and presented fake sweet smiles. "Ah, Panya-sama, please tell us, is the Shogun as handsome as they say?"

"Is he old?"

"Is he young?"

"Che, stop acting like old maids! Nobody has seen the Shogun! He sends for his servants to carry out his orders and fetch him the food! For all I care, he could be the size of the kozo here!" He pointed at Rukia annoyed.

"I want. Sakuranbo pie." murmured Rukia, ignoring the mob and looking at the baker expectantly.

"Baka! The Shogun ordered all the sakuranbo pies for his norimono! I don't have any more!"

"Then bake another one!"

"Desu ka? If you have no money, I am not baking you anything! If you pay for it, I will! Everyone is too busy to cater to little miss Rukia's orders!"

Rukia huffed, sitting back on her feet and pouting.

The baker blinked at her and returned to the kitchen with a suspicious scowl.

"Rukia! Rukia!" The little girl barely flinched at the voice of a panting Mrs. Araharu. The woman ran up to her and leaned against the window to catch her breath. The girl didn't turn to her, but kept pouting at the wall, which the woman perceived as being mad at her.

"Look, Rukia, I am very sorry about what Beka said. I'd said it during a very stressful time and I didn't mean it. I am sorry if I ever gave you the impression that..."

But Rukia wasn't listening. She was lost in thought. How could that Shogun have ordered all the sakuranbo pies? He must be starving, or he was really fat or he wanted all the food to himself!

"... and you know, I am all alone to take care of all these children and no one ever thinks of—"

"Araharu-sama?"

The woman stopped her futile apology and looked at the girl with guilt. "Hai, Rukia?"

"Ano, do you have money to buy me a sakuranbo pie?"

The woman blinked and ran her palms over the folds of her dress. "I have no money on me, Rukia, and I am saving up for shoes and—"

"Ano, does the Shogun have money?"

Mrs. Araharu looked at the girl puzzled and nodded. "Hai, lots and lots of money."

"Soudesuka..." murmured the child in thought.

Mrs. Araharu sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly. "Listen, Rukia, you need to come back to the orphanage now, what is done is done and-" The woman opened her eyes to see Rukia gone. She frantically whipped her head from side to side, until her panicked eyes fell on the girl's backside as she crawled between the feet of the crowd that blocked the tea house's door. She surely wouldn't...?

"RUKIA!"

The woman ran and desperately pushed against the crowd, trying to get ahead, losing sight of the child in the process. "RUKIA!" After shoving the last woman out of the way, Mrs. Araharu made to step through the door, only to have two kwan dao cross before her threateningly and block her path.

"No one passes," called the guards in unison, but the woman could clearly see Rukia crawling under a table towards the back of the shop where the norimono was.

"No, you don't understand! One my children is in the there!" The woman cried desperately, panting and waving her arms nervously. She had to keep the little devil away from the Shogun at all costs!

"No child passed through, onna!" growled the bigger guard, offended.

"But..."

"Eh, what's going on here?" grunted the baker as he emerged from the kitchen with a cocked eyebrow and his belly spilling out.

"Panya-sama! Rukia got in!"

"Nonsense, woman. Not one person got in on our watch!" barked the guards, pushing the woman away with the flat sides of their blades.

The baker looked around, seeing no sign of the girl. "Aye, Araharu-sama! You are getting old and you are seeing things! Not even that little sneaky pest could pass under our noses!" laughed the fat man.

"So YOU took all my sakuranbo pies!"

The pipe almost fell from the baker's lips and the woman held her breath in mortification as her glasses slipped from her nose and fell to the ground. Even the guards were stunned by the voice of the little girl, who had just crawled inside the forbidden norimono.


End file.
